The Rise of Ethan Ryder: The Despised Husband & CEO

“Darryl, dump away our foot wash.”

Three women sat on the sofa, having just had their feet soaked and washed. From afar, these three beauties exuded an air of seduction and class, each with their unique charm. Among these three women, was Darryl’s wife and her two best friends.

Upon his wife’s behest, Darryl dumped the bowls of dirty water away subserviently. He dared not utter a single complaint; after all, he was the family’s live-in son-in-law. Even after three years of marriage, he had no place in the family. His wife and mother-in-law would berate him for the slightest mistakes. Even a mutt would have a higher standing in the family than he did.

Darryl and Lily Lyndon were husband and wife for three years, but only in name, for they have not consummated their marriage. He has not even felt the touch of her hand! Every night Darryl slept on the floor because of how heartily Lily despised him.

Washing, cooking, cleaning the rooms, every single household chore was Darryl’s duty. Once, he accidentally broke a bowl while cooking and was berated by Lily for half an hour.

There was also a night when Darryl had to use the bathroom and unintentionally woke Lily up, and she slapped him hard on the face without any hesitation.

That was the first time in his life that Darryl got hit. Since young, his parents could not even bear to lay a single finger on him! He was angry, yet he had to keep his fury to himself. All he could do was apologize profusely to Lily. In the end, he was punished to kneel the entire night.

It has been three years now, and Darryl had gotten used to this lifestyle. Who else did he have but himself to blame for becoming a live-in son-in-law? Worse still, having lived day in day out with Lily for three years, Darryl found himself unwittingly in love with her, even though he knew full well that she despised him and treated him like trash!

Darryl was initially the second eldest son of the Darby clan, known as the largest clan in the Jiangnan region. Three years ago, he had used eight million bucks in cash to purchase an eight percent share in a company called Southeast Petroleum.

During that time, hundreds of members of the Darby clan had scolded Darryl. Some called him mad; some even accused him of harboring bad intentions, wanting to siphon the family fortune for himself. Ultimately the clan agreed in unison to disown Darryl, including his parents, and erased them from the clan records!

During these three years, Darryl felt the volatility of relationships. Old and dear friends were constantly looking for ways to avoid him. He had no choice but to resort to becoming a live-in son-in-law for the sake of his livelihood. He has never mentioned this matter to a single soul, not even to Lily.

“My dear Lily, you’ve certainly trained your husband well,” said Jade, one of Lily’s best friends.

Lily let out a cold chuckle. “Are you talking about Darryl? The mere sight of him disgusts me. Other women marry into affluent families. Meanwhile, it’s just my luck to be stuck with a piece of trash like him. Look at how uncouth he is. Just one look is enough to tell you that he’s a peasant from the countryside. Bringing him to the Lyndon clan’s annual gathering tomorrow would be an embarrassment.”

Jade could not help but sneak a glance at Darryl. Indeed, all he had on were bargained goods, looking absolutely shabby. Jade laughed. “Alright, Lily, enough about him. On a more serious note, I heard that there have been some issues with your company lately?”

Lily nodded solemnly. “Last month, we lost millions trying to start up a fashion business. Now the company is short on funds and is in dire need of five million dollars. We’ve got to find an investor within a week to finance our company.”

“My dear Lily, who’s willing to fork out five million in a week to finance you?” sighed Jade.

Lily did not reply, instead, she noticed that Darryl, who had completed his task, was eavesdropping on their conversation. She shot him a sharp stare and said coldly, “Darryl, who said you could be here? Get lost and have my clothes washed.”

“Wash my jeans too. They’re in my luggage,” chimed in Jade as well.

Darryl dared not complain and proceeded to place their clothes into the washing machine along with his. Tomorrow was his high school reunion, and he had to put a little effort into looking presentable at the very least. As he was thinking about the reunion, his thought was interrupted by the buzzing of his cellphone. He checked his cellphone and saw that he had received a text message from a number ending with six eights. His eyebrows furrowed upon seeing the number, ‘Isn’t this the Darby clan’s number?’ he thought.

Darryl opened the message in curiosity and was shocked by reading it.

‘Oh, our second young master, please help our clan. The Darby clan is in dire need of funds, and we really need your financial support!’

‘Preposterous!’ Darryl furrowed his eyebrows and thought to himself. ‘Just three years ago, I was banished by the clan, and now with nothing to my name and 20 bucks in my pocket, they want my financial support? What use am I to them?’

Darryl’s thoughts were once again interrupted by the buzzing of his cellphone. It was another message.

‘Young master, please, I’m begging you to help your clan. The shares you bought three years ago have turned a huge profit. Please... we’re doomed without your support...’

‘What!?’

Darryl was taken aback by that message. He quickly took out his Amethyst Bank black card at a speed he never knew he had. The card had been in a state of disuse for three long years. It was a status symbol for the rich, for every card has its own dedicated customer service representative. He hastily dialed up the bank’s customer service.

“Greetings, Mr. Darby. How may we assist you today?” answered a sweet feminine voice.

“Quick! Give me my account balance.”

“My pleasure, sir, please wait a moment,” replied the lady. Within seconds, the lady spoke again. “Mr. Darby, your total account balance has a large sum above our checking limit. If you could kindly come to our bank’s VIP section with the appropriate identity verification, we would be glad to assist you.”

Before the lady could finish her sentence, Darryl had already hung up the call.

‘Total account balance has a large sum!?’ laughed Darryl while entertaining his thoughts. Who would have thought that this investment three years ago, which caused his banishment, would lead to such a pleasant surprise three years later! The added mystery of not knowing the exact amount of this large sum of money fueled his excitement.

“Lily, look at Darryl checking his account balance on the phone,” laughed Jade uncontrollably.

Lily laughed as well. “I give him an allowance of 200 bucks a day. I suppose he’s saved up quite a sum over the past 3 years.”

“Oh Lily, just treat it as if you’re rearing a dog,” said Jade, prompting the three women to laugh in unison.

Darryl ran to his wife in excitement and said, “Your company lacks five million bucks, right? How about... how about I find a way to solve this issue?”

Jade burst out laughing with no end in sight. She merely glanced at Darryl and said, “Darryl, can you even comprehend the value of five million? Dear Lily gives you 200 bucks every day. If you can somehow fork out five million, perhaps I should start calling you daddy.”

“Oh really?” said Darryl with a sly grin. “In that case, you better keep what you said in mind.”

Lily could not stand him any longer. Darryl must have lost his mind, standing among them looking like a peasant bothered Lily. She impatiently waved her hand. “Get lost, stop being an eyesore around us.”

“Oh,” he reacted and left without saying another word.

Darryl was unable to sleep that night due to the excitement. He dared not believe that such good news would appear out of nowhere. He was determined to head to the bank in-person to check the balance for himself.

Darryl tossed and turned until dawn before barely falling asleep. However, halfway through his sweet slumber came the voice of his mother-in-law reverberating from the living room.

“Darryl, wake up and send my daughter to work.”

Darryl heard his mother-in-law, Samantha’s voice, in his sleep. He assumed that it was just a dream and simply turned his back and continued his slumber. At this moment, the bedroom door opened, and in came Samantha giving him an impatient kick.

“Are you deaf or dumb? Didn’t you hear me calling you to send Lily to work?” said Samantha coldly.

Darryl had to admit, Samantha was a beauty in her thirties. She took great care to maintain her looks.

Darryl drowsily got up from the floor and stared at Samantha with a dumbfounded look on his face. ‘After three years of marriage, not once have I gone out with Lily, for she found me to be an embarrassment, and now out of sudden, she wants me to send her to work!?’ Darryl thought to himself.

It was right at that thought when Lily herself came into the room, dressed in her business attire. She stomped her feet in a rush. “Are you deaf? Be quick, or is it that you’re not willing to send me?”

“I’m willing! I’m willing!” Darryl said he nodded his head non-stop. He hastily put on a change of clothes, got on his electric bike, and drove Lily to her office.

Lily was filled with fiery rage due to her company’s lack of funds and the urgent need for a five million bucks investment. However, she was not able to find an investor, and now her company is facing bankruptcy! An emergency meeting of shareholders was called to deal with this issue, and as the general manager of the company, her attendance was mandatory. It was only when she stepped out of the door in the morning that she realized that she had lent her car to Jade. As a last resort, she had no choice but to have Darryl send her to work.